England v South Africa betting tips, odds, predictions – RWC 2019 final

Welcome to our free predictions and odds update for match 48 of the Rugby World Cup: the final between England v South Africa at International Stadium Yokohama on Saturday, November 2.

It’s pretty clear that this will be a titanic encounter up front. South Africa are famed for a game plan that revolves around forward power; England’s forwards similarly have been dominant throughout this tournament and gave them the decisive edge against the All Blacks in their semi-final win.
We do not expect a free-flowing, high-scoring affair, with defence the key plank in both side’s arsenals. Or at least attack through defence.
South Africa have been criticised for a boring style of play which is all about field position, but the fact remains it is a winning style of play.
‘‘We accept the criticism and certainly accept that there are some things in our game that we have to improve,’’ coach Rassie Erasmus said. ‘‘But we have put ourselves in a position to maybe win the World Cup and we are in the final.’’
The Springboks at least will go some attacking spark with the return from an ankle injury of flying winger Cheslin Kolbe, the former sevens player whose dancing feet have at times lit up this World Cup.
Meanwhile, England will go in as hot favourites on the strength of their win over New Zealand, with the English chasing their second World Cup title after their victory in Sydney in 2003.
The Springboks are looking to join New Zealand as three-time world champions. They won the title at home in 1995 and in France in 2007, when they beat England 15-6 in the final.
‘‘We know that they are going to come through the front door,’’ England coach Eddie Jones said. ‘‘There are not many Springbok teams that don’t come through the front door. So we’ve got to be ready at the front door and have enough cover at the back door, too.
‘‘Rassie [Erasmus] is a cunning coach, and has done a great job with the Springboks. They are a massively aggressive physical forward pack. They are going to be a difficult side to beat.’’

Meanwhile, England have been handed a boost with the news Jonny May looks on course to be fit for the final, as he recovers from a dead leg sustained in the 19-7 victory over New Zealand. May also struggled with a hamstring injury last week ahead of the All Blacks’ clash.

Check out our team previews to get the latest form, our tips for leading try-scorer from each team and where we think they will finish in the tournament.

England
South Africa

Here are our England v South Africa final predictions and odds for their clash at the 2019 Rugby World Cup in Japan.

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Rugby World Cup Match 48: final – England v South Africa

Kick-off: 6pm local time (GMT +9)
Venue: International Stadium Yokohama

England v South Africa odds

Head to head odds: England $1.47, South Africa $2.70
Handicap line odds: England (-4.5 points) $1.91, South Africa (+4.5 points) $1.91

England v South Africa – past 10 meetings

June 9, 2012: South Africa 22 d England 17, Kings Park, Durban
June 16, 2012: South Africa 36 d England 27, Ellis Park, Johannesburg
June 23, 2012: South Africa 14 drew with England 14, Nelson Mandela Bay Stadium, Port Elizabeth
November 24, 2012: South Africa 16 d England 15, Twickenham, London
November 15, 2014: South Africa 31 d England 28, Twickenham, London
November 12, 2016: England 37 d South Africa 21, Twickenham, London
June 9, 2018: South Africa 42 d England 39, Ellis Park, Johannesburg
June 16, 2018: South Africa 23 d England 12, Free State Stadium, Bloemfontein June 23, 2018: England 25 d South Africa 10, Newlands, Cape Town
November 3, 2018: England 12 d South Africa 11, Twickenham, London

Previous World Cup 2019 matches:

England:
England 35 (Manu Tuilagi 2, Luke Cowan-Dickie, Jamie George tries; Owen Farrell 3 cons, 3 pens) d Tonga 3 (Sonatane Takulua pen). Referee: Paul Williams.
England 45 (Joe Cokanasiga 2, Luke Cowan-Dickie, George Ford, Lewis Ludlam, Ruaridh McConnochie, Billy Vunipola tries; Ford 5 cons) d USA 7 (Bryce Campbell try; AJ MacGinty con). Referee: Nic Berry.
England 39 (Luke Cowan-Dickie, Elliot Daly, George Ford, Jonny May, Jack Nowell, Ben Youngs tries; Owen Farrell 3 cons, pen) d Argentina 10 (Matias Moroni try; Emiliano Boffelli con, Benjamin Urdapilleta pen). Referee: Nigel Owens.
QF: England 40 (Jonny May 2, Kyle Sinckler, Anthony Watson tries; Owen Farrell 4 cons, 4 pens) d Australia 16 (Marika Koroibete try; Christian Leali’ifano con, 3 pens). Referee: Jerome Garces.
SF: England 19 (Manu Tuilagi try; Owen Farrell con, George Ford 4 pens) d New Zealand 7 (Ardie Savea try; Richie Mo’unga con). Referee: Nigel Owens.

South Africa:
New Zealand 23 (Scott Barrett, George Bridge tries; Richie Mo’unga 2 cons, Mo’unga 2, Beauden Barrett pens) d South Africa 13 (Pieter-Steph du Toit try; Handre Pollard con, pen, drop goal). Referee: Jerome Garces.
South Africa 57 (Mbongeni Mbonambi 2, Makazole Mapimpi 2, Francois Louw, Lukhanyo Am, Warrick Gelant, Siya Kolisi, Schalk Brits; Elton Jantjies 6 cons) d Namibia 3 (Cliven Loubser pen). Referee: Mathieu Raynal.
South Africa 49 (Cheslin Kolbe 2, Lukhanyo Am, Makazole Mapimpi, Malcolm Marx, Bongi Mbonambi, RG Snyman tries; Handre Pollard 4 cons, 2 pens) d Italy 3 (Tommaso Allan pen). Referee: Wayne Barnes.
South Africa 66 (Cobus Reinach 3, Schalk Brits, Damian de Allende, Warrick Gelant, Frans Malherbe, S’busiso Nkosi, Francois Steyn, Damian Willemse tries; Elton Jantjies 8 cons) d Canada 7 (Matt Heaton try; Peter Nelson con). Referee: Luke Pearce.
QF: South Africa 26 (Makazole Mapimpi 2, Faf de Klerk tries; Handre Pollard con, 3 pens) d Japan 3 (Yu Tamura pen). Referee: Wayne Barnes.
SF: South Africa 19 (Damian de Allende try; Handre Pollard con, 4 pens) d Wales 16 (Josh Adams try; Leigh Halfpenny con, Daniel Biggar 3 pens). Referee: Jerome Garces.

England v South Africa tips RWC2019

South Africa +4.5 points at $1.91

Once again we think this match is going to be decided by a narrow margin, with goal-kicking accuracy vital and a moment of magic from one of the outside backs likely to prove decisive. England deserve favouritism but we suspect the Boks will enjoy the underdog status and they have shown they are an uncompromising unit in defence. The return of Cheslin Kolbe gives them a real attacking weapon while fellow winger Makazole Mapimpi has been sensational as a finisher and is one to watch. We believe this match will be alive right down to wire so are happy to be on the team with the start, especially given their overall winning record against the English.

Match total under 40 points

The various bookmakers have plenty of variations on this market but we believe defence will win out over attack and this one and possibly the score could even come in below 30 points. Shop around for the best value.

Tom Curry for man of the match at $13

Curry and his sidekick Sam Underhill have been standout players for England in this tournament. The young duo have had plenty of attention and if they continue on in the same vein and England win, then both these players seem sure to be prominent when discussing man of the match. Curry and Underhill will be at the coalface where the game will be won and lost.

England v South Africa prediction

This should be a fitting finale to what has been a wonderful tournament, typhoons notwithstanding. England head into the finals as the most dominant team in the tournament, while South Africa of course suffered that reversal in their opening group match against the All Blacks. But the Springboks have been flawless since and they are going to be extraordinarily hard to beat given their overall size and also their simple game plan: batter the opposition into submission. They have a huge pack and they don’t get any smaller late in the game when they send on the finishers. England can cope with the blunt approach, and indeed have more than enough firepower of their own. We just hope the match is not decided by the issuing of a red or yellow card. We picture this match alive ticking into the final 10 minutes, with the perfect opportunity for on the backs to step up and make the match their own with a piece of brilliance. We can’t wait for kick-off. Good punting.

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